Deputy climate minister and government plenipotentiary for renewable energy sources, Ireneusz Zyska, referring to previously sent information, during the European Economic Congress in Katowice officially confirmed that work is underway to organize another round of auctions before the end of this year. The deputy minister explained that the auctions held at the turn of May and June did not exhaust the entire volume for individual RES technologies. Ireneusz Zyska pointed out that the shares are needed due to the projects present on the market that could be contracted in auctions, he also stated that it was better to do it as soon as possible, especially if the established values resulting from the regulation were not used. We can expect more information on this in October.
So far, the Energy Regulatory Office has conducted eight auctions for renewable energy sources in 2021. Of the 68 TWh of electricity for sale from renewable sources, 54% was sold.
In the amendment to the RES Act passed in August, the auction system was extended until 2027, however, in order to launch the auction in the following years, it will be necessary to obtain a notification from the European Commission. Deputy Minister Zyska revealed that the Polish government is after preliminary talks and that Brussels gave a positive opinion.
During the European Economic Congress, the government plenipotentiary for renewable energy also expressed his support for the liberalization of regulations, which since 2016 have blocked the possibility of preparing new onshore wind farm projects, for which investors have not been granted construction permits until now.
Prepared regulations allow for the possibility of locating wind farms at a distance from houses closer than 10 times the height of the wind farm provided for in the Distance Act. However, the draft establishes a minimum distance of 500 meters from wind farms to houses. Deputy Minister Zyska would like the bill to be discussed by the Sejm later this year.